At an impromptu barbecue
with three women I have just met
I am trying not to be overly aware
that they are in their late 40s and I
just turned 50 as we swap all the most
interesting relationship stories we know.

One woman has two kids & was divorced
25 years ago. Ten years ago she was injured
at work, went on disability, and lost her house.
Her father committed suicide when she was ten.
She hasn't had sex in six years. She knows about
astrology and identifies me correctly as an Aquarius.

Another woman is having trouble finding a man
at her age it isn't as easy as when she was in her 20s
and she has decided that being alone isn't so bad.
She's a pastry chef at a restaurant I have actually
been to twice. Has her own condo. She's not sure she
believes in reincarnation, but she believes in karma.

What comes around goes around.

The third woman has a boyfriend from Ireland
who spends a lot of time with his kids and has
told her he doesn't ever want to get married
again—he's been there once and it didn't work out.
She's fine with that, she works for a marketing firm
and makes a good living.

The first woman, the astrology one, discovers
that she has gotten her period. She laughs. Ugh!
She wasn't expecting it and doesn't have a tampon.
I grab my purse, dig one out, and hand it to her.
The men are in the garage talking about
cars and gutters and drainage systems.

Later the moon rises and she
is powerful and beautiful and unafraid
of the black, unpredictable night.